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The World Wide Fund for Nature: South Africa (WWF-SA) has welcomed an announcement by Pick n Pay stating they are committed to transforming its entire fresh, frozen and canned seafood operations to meet strict sustainability standards by the end of 2015. This significant commitment by Pick n Pay is the first of its kind in Africa.

Under the commitment, Pick n Pay has publicly pledged itself to only sell seafood products which are either:
• Certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) for wild-caught products;
• Certified by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) for farmed products, or equivalent standards;
• Categorized as “green” in terms of WWF’s Southern African Sustainable Seafood Initiative (WWF SASSI). Fish species on WWF SASSI’s “green” list are considered the most sustainable choices (from the healthiest and most well managed populations). These species can handle current fishing pressure, or are farmed in a manner that does not harm the environment; or
• From fisheries or farms which are engaged in credible, time-bound improvement projects.

Dr Morné du Plessis, WWF-SA’s Chief Executive Officer said: “This is a giant leap forward in our ongoing efforts to keep our fish stocks at healthy levels. WWF believes that corporate engagement is key to transforming markets and for adopting and promoting sector-wide shifts to sustainable development and corporate best practice. Many marine ecosystems are currently facing unprecedented threats from human activities such as overfishing and climate change. We congratulate Pick n Pay for leading the way in setting these tangible conservation goals for the retail sector.”

Securing responsible fisheries and healthy marine ecosystems is only possible by working with the fishing and aquaculture industries along the entire seafood supply chain, which is why WWF-SA has been actively engaging Pick n Pay through WWF SASSI’s Retailer Participation Scheme since its inception.

In 2010 Pick n Pay also announced that it had signed a partnership agreement with WWF’s Sustainable Fisheries Programme of which WWF SASSI forms a major component. This three year partnership agreement is worth R6.1 million and aims to restore over-exploited fish stocks to sustainably managed levels, while maintaining or improving the state of other stocks.

Pick n Pay’s commitments follow the growing international trend of retailers making a formal commitment to source produce only from sustainable fisheries, thereby transforming their seafood operations.
South Africa’s off-shore fish stocks remain in relatively good health compared with stocks in the Northern Hemisphere but the present state of our inshore resources is of serious concern. WWF-SA works to ensure that there is adequate protection of our marine resources and environments and works with business and other partners to find sustainable solutions to environmental challenges.